Handle for multicellular folding boxes



y 26, 1960 M. l. WILLIAMSON 2,946,501

HANDLE FOR MULTICELLULAR FOLDING BOXES Filed July 19, 1957 5 She ets-Sheet 1 Fig. 2.

MAW

INVEN TOR. Marshall I. Williamson ATTORNEY July 26, 1960 M. 1. WILLIAMSON 2,946,501

HANDLE FOR MULTICELLULAR FOLDING BOXES Filed July 19 1957 INVENTOR. Marshall Williamson Hm 7- W A TTOR/VEY 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 26, 1960 M. l. WILLIAMSON HANDLE FOR MULTICELLULAR FOLDING BOXES 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 19, 1957 Marshall 1. Williamson ATTORNEY July 26, 1960 M. I. WILLIAMSON HANDLE FOR MULTICELLULAR FOLDING BOXES 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed July 19, 1957 INVENTOR. Marshall Williamson A TTORMEY disc.

:terial from which they are made.

United States Patent 2,946,501 Patented 'July 26, 1960 HANDLE FOR MULTICELLULAR FOLDING BOXES Filed July 19, 1957, Ser. No. 672,991

9 Claims. (Cl. 229-52) This invention relates to improvements in the construction of handles for compartmented or multicellular folding boxes.

Multicellular folding boxes. equipped with a carrying handle serve as carriers for bottles, jars, cans, or other merchandise.

The handles may assume a wide variety of forms which may be classified in various ways.

One classification may be made on the basis of whether the handle is integral with, or separate from the multicellular box.

Integral handles usually are in the form of a tall center partition in the multicellular folding box having a hand hold near the top. This construction has the advantage of simplicity, but the disadvantage of requiring a substantial additional amount of board, which raises the cost of the carrier. A further disadvantage of the integral handle is that it interferes wtin the stacking of loaded carriers into pyramids if the handle partition is tall and extends above the tops of the bottles or other merchan- If the integral handle is short and terminates below the tops of the bottles, it is inconvenient to grasp.

Distinct from the aforementioned integral handles are the handles which are separate from the box structure, require assembly with the multicellular box, and are de- 'tachable therefrom. This invention relates to the latter class of handles which otters among other features the .advantage that the size of the box blank is considerably smaller than in the case of a'constructicn employing an integral handle.

Handles may also be classified on the basis of the ma- Various forms of .handles have been proposed employing a material different "from the material of the multicellular box, generally Wire. Wire handles have certain advantages among which may be mentioned great strength and a comfortable shape which generally is so designed as to permit the handle to be lifted above the tops of the bottles for carrying and to be depressed below the tops of the bottles for stackmg.

A disadvantage of wire handles is their cost which tends to make them uneconomical except for carriers making several round trips between the bottler or packet and the consumer.

Detachable handles may also be constructed from paperboard, generally of a heavier caliper than the box to provide the necessary strength. This invention provides a handle construction of great strength which permits use of board of the same grade and light caliper as the box.

As will become apparent from the following description, the handle is easy to assemble with a multi-cellular box structure and is so designed that it does not interfere with the loading of the carrier by conventional and established loading equipment. The handle is so designed that it may telescope with regard to the multi-cellular box structure and is provided with structural elements which cause it to engage the multicellular structure automatically. This faciliates the assembly and eliminates the" danger of accidental disengagement.

If a multicellular box structure is to serve as a con tainer for a plurality of bottles. or jars to. be transported, the glass contact between bottles and jars in adjacent compartments or cells presents a serious problem. This prob-- lem is conventionally met by deep partitions or separatorsv between the compartments or cells. This form of separation necessitates an enlarged blank of correspondingly higher cost.

Handles embodying the present invention serve as an effective separator preventing glass-to-glass contact between adjacent cells, particularly if the handle is depressed. By use of handles embodying the present invention the cost of larger box blanks providing glass separation may be saved by shifting the separating function to the handles.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the detailed description which follows accompanied by drawings showing, for the purpose of illustration, preferred embodiments of this invention. The invention also resides in certain new and original features of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set V forth and claimed.

Although the characteristic features of this invention which are believed to be novel will be particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, its objects and advantages, and the manner in which it may be carried out may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part of it, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a blank from which a handle embodying the invention may be constructed;

Figure 2. is a plan view of the blank of Figure 1 after a folding and gluing operation;

Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the handle formed from the structure of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a typical twin-row multicellular folding box in connection with which the handle of Figure 3 may be used;

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the multicellular box structure of Figure 4 combined with the handle of Fig ure 3;

Figure 6 is an elevational section view of the structure shown in Figure 5 filled with bottles to illustrate the bottle separating function of the handle, the section being taken on line 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a plan view of a flat blank of modified con- 'struction for a single-row carrier;

Figure 8 is a plan view of the handle of the blank of Figure 7 after an initial folding and gluing operation;

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a multicellular folding box structure combined with a handle constructed from the blank of Figure 7,.the handle spanning a single partitionfand Figure 10 is a perspective view illustrating the same type of handle shown in Figure 9, the handle spanning two partitions and a cell.

In the following description and in the claims various details will be identified by specific names for convenience. The names, however, are intended to be generic in their application. Corresponding reference characters refer to corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawings.

The drawings accompanying, and forming part of, this specification disclose certain specific details of the invention for the purpose of explanation of broader aspects, but it is understood that the details may be modified in various respects without departure from the principles of the invention and that the invention may be applied to other structures than the ones shown.

The blank A shown in Figure may be cut and scored in multiple from large sheets or rolls of paperboard or other suitable foldable sheet material on automatic cutting and creasing machines.

The handle blank A comprises a'pair othandle panels 11 and 12 articulated along a central fold line 13'. The upper portions 14 and 1501"- the handle panels adjacent the centralfold line 13 may be termed gripportions and maybe provided with finger or hand -apertures.16 and 17." i In the illustra-ted form of handle-these apertnresare handle-along the fold lines 22 and 23.

Flange panels 24 and 25 are articulated to the-handle panel Fir-along flange fold lines Zfiand27-extenclihg substantially at right angleswith respect to the central 'fold lir'1e13f Similarly, flangepanelsZS and 2Q are articulated to the handle panel 12 along flange fold lines 30 and 31.

Blanked out slots 26', 27-536 and 31 maybe provided in line with the" flange fold-lines 26,- 27,3(1 and 31 to provide for greater clearance by elimination of the bead which isformed at; the back of theboardby the creasing tool.

Opposite flange panels 24 and 28, and also the'flange panels :25 and 29, are articulated to each other along foldlines 32 and 33 whiph, in the flat blank, form extensions of the central fold line,..13.

Diago'nal'gusset fold lines 34,- 35, 36 and 37 extend from the intersections of the flange fold lines with the central fold line,13, preferably, although not necessarily, atan angle of 45degrees.

Box engaging flaps 38 and 39 are articulated-to the handle panels ll-and 12. These flaps are wider than the handlepanels, width being measured between the flange fold' lines which border the handle panels. The flaps 38 and 39 are articulated along flap fold'lines 40 and 41'- wing-shaped outlineof the lateral flap portions 48, 49, 50

and 51.

Auxiliary central folding creases 52 and 53 may be pro vided, the end portions 54 and 55' of which may include interrupted cuts to facilitate sharp creasing oi the board along the ausiliary central creases- Angular cuts or cut scores .56 may be provided to extend from the ends of the flange fold lines. These cuts 56 promote creasing of the flaps38, 39 in an angular direction with respect to the direction of the flange field lines 26,27, 30 and 31;

The blankA may be conyerted into handleform as lows;

The blank is first foldedalong the flap fold .vllillfls 4 oi.

and 41 to bend the flaps 38"and 39 into a position oyerlying thehandle panels and their adjacent flange panels. In ordertofnraintain the flaps .38 and39 in folded back position, the-securing areas 42 and43 may be fastened to e.,.hand e.p nl 11 nd Y12 by es ve. pr ie fi the pa t ons or y. r. mea s, r sh s e A thi p se of pe at qnt elteb lfi nd l cr d by Y thear nure :21.61 d, 1 ..may.a b olde ask rc j the pp rorg p p o 14 l ndr i the h ndle els an adhesive bond between the tabs and the handlelpanel.

being optional. The resulting partially folded andpregluedflat'blank A is shownin Figure 2. shippedand stored in flat condition and may be converted into handle shape by a few further folding opera tions asfol-lows:

Tue-hand e p nels 11- -anc,1 r fol e uhstan: tially p about hecentralfdd.l neal her fiss It may be .10 formed by cuts-18 and 19 defining tabs Zfiand 21 which-'- remain articulated to the grip portions-14 and of the and supported along a substantial length of the centr'al' the flange panels 24, 25, 28 and 29 are folded with respect to the handle panels 11 and 12 to assume an angularv position with respect to the handle panels, the direction of folding being such that the handle panels 11 and 12 are spaced less than the flange panels 24, 28 and 25, 29, which flare away from each other. Thus folded, the fold lines 40 and 41 are bent at the points at which the flange fold lines 26, 27, 3t) and 31 meet them to represent substantially a hiconcave figure in 4 plan view The folded shape is shown in Figure 5.

The flexing of the board along the flange fold line cause stile folded-backwing portions 43,49,50 2111;151: 16 I be drawn tightly against the handle panels and their bordering flange panels, particularly along the areas in line with the flange fold lines. In this condition the engaging'flaps 3S and 39. cannot be folded vdown and are capable of supporting a substantial load securely. Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the handle structure showing the further creasing of the blank along the diagonal gusset fold lines 36.andfiTwhichpccursas a conseguence of the folding of the flange panels into -angnlar,position,;

with respect to the handle panels 11 and 12. r

The. cuts 56 cause the wing .portions-49and51 tocrease relatively to the centertabs 42 and 43, preferably,along,,, the cuts rather than along a crease in line with;tl1e flange;.-

fold-lines 27, 31. Asa result the upper portions of;t he

wings 49 and 51 tend to pull away from the flange panels,

25,29 for more convenientv engagement withgthe web portion of. the carrier which will now bedescribed A representative form of a multicellular box1is ;shown inFigure 4. This form of box embodies features dis closed and claimed in my co-pending .applicationiSerial;

No 673,067, filed July 19, 1957,- now Patent No. 2,901,-

157; in whichdetails ofitsconstruction are described.

at length,

For the purpose of understanding of the present inven. tion it is sufficient to note that the structure B of Figure 4..- comprises two units 57 and 58.articulated to each other at 59. Each unit comprises a bottom panel 60, anouter. wall panel 61, an inner wall panel 62, and a multi-cellular.

top structure 63, in each of which a number of cells are formed. There are end cells 64 and interrnediate cells 65. The :cells are separated-from one another by transverse partitions 66 which also provide depending cell liners with skirts 67, the bottom edges 68 oflwhichare substantially equidistant from the bottom panel 60.

The bottom edge 68 of the cell liner or skirt of :the. central cells 65-1nay be cut back as shown at :68' for.

purposes which will become apparent hereinafter.-

Theillustrated 7 cells are of substantially octagonal shape, two diagonal points ofthe octagon being the peaks 69 of the partitions 66, two further diagonal points are the base '70 of the V which the cells present in side view. The handle is preferably so shaped as to follow-thecontour of the cells. 7

Turning now to Figures 5 and 6, the formed-handle A" isinserted into the two central cells 65; of the multicellular structure. folding creases 52 and 53 are in line with the points 70in the -inner wall panel 52.- The-outer edges of the flange panelsZSand 29-lie slightly inside the peaks69 The box-engaging flaps-38 and form bottle separators. and 39 and more particularly the wings 49," 51 are hooked; under the cellwall structure 67 of-the central cells 65, andgthe edge 68 of the cutaway portion is in a position to be engaged along the fold lines" 4t and- 41- of the handle. The multicellular structure B is engaged cell;lin er.in a position in which the weight contents'in the cells is supported in a favorable manner due to the fact that the engaged cell liners 6 7 are vertical and are prevented from buckling by being sandwiched between the handle panel and the flanges andfthe engaging flaps 49 and 51 which are foldecl backupon, and drawntightly' against, it.

In this position the auxiliary central- As is seen from Figure 6 the handle may be fully depressed as shown in broken lines. In this position the carrier may be loaded, for example, with bottles 71 by conventional equipment and the handle provides full glass-to-glass contact protection for the bottles.

When pulled up, the wings 49, 51 hook under the cell walls or skirts 67 to support the carrier. It will be noted that the cut-back edge 68' forms an angle with the fold lines 40, 41 when the carrier rests on a fiat surface. When the carrier is picked up by the handle, two halves of the carrier tilt relatively to each other about the fold line 59 until the inner side walls of the carrier lie face to face. This action causes the tops of the bottles to move outwardly thereby providing additional space for the hand of the person grasping the handle.

The clockwise tilting of the right portion of the carrier and the counterclockwise tilting of the left portion result in a change in the angle of the edges 68' which now assume the same angle as the fold lines 41!, 41 of the handle, thus providing full-length engagement of the carrier cell wall edge 68 by the handle.

In assembled position the slits 26', 27, 30 and 31' of the handle lie in line with corners of the cell structureof the carrier as is particularly well visible in Figure 5. The removal of stock by the formation of the slits, particularlythe removal of the score bead which forms on the back side of the board, permits the handle panels to rest snugly against the cell walls 67, thereby eliminating crowding and pinching of the walls 67 in the space between the main portion of the handle, e.g., panels 12, 28, 29, and the engaging flap 39 folded there- -over.

The handle may readily be depressed again and pulled up, and will automatically reengage the edge 68 of the cell skirts.

Figure 7 shows another form which handles embody- .ing the invention may assume.

The two handle panels 111 and 112 of the blank C are articulated along a central fold line 113 which may be supplemented by a number of further fold lines 113' spaced from, but parallel to, the central fold line 113. The handle panels have box-engaging flaps 138 and 139 articulated thereto along flap fold lines 140 and 141. The flaps comprise central securing areas 142 and 143 flanked by lateral wing portions 148, 149, 150 and 151. The central securing areas are separated from the wing areas by cuts 144, 145, 146 and 147.

Central folding creases 152 and 153 extend down the v center of the handle panels to, and beyond, the flap fold lines 140 and 141 into the body of the flaps 138 and 139. ,Portions of the central creases may be interruptedly cut scored as shown at 154 and 155. Slanted score lines 172, 173, 174 and 175 extend from the central,

creases 152 and 153 towards the lateral edges of the blank in the vicinity of the fold lines 113 and 113.

V-cuts 176 and 177 may be provided in the securing areas142 and 143 to facilitate the engagement of the handle with the carrier, as will later be described.

Prior to assembly of the handle with the multicellular box structure the engaging flaps 138 and 139 are folded backupon the handle panels 111 and 112, at which time the central areas 142 and 143 may be adhesively secured to the handle panels 111 and 112. The folding and gluing operation results in a structure C shown in Figure 8.

Forassembly of the handle with a multicellular box, the blank is-folded along the fold line 113 and is creased along the. central folding creases 152 and 153. This creasingoperation again draws the engaging flaps 138 and 139 tightly against the handle panels 111 and 112. The handle is then inserted into the cells 64 of the box structure 57, as shown in Figure 9. The box 57 may be loaded while the handle is in the position in which its bottom edges 140 and 141 rest against the bottom peak 69 (not visible in Figure 9, but identified by numpanel 60. When pulled up, the handle engages the transverse partition 66 with the engaging flaps 138 and 139 in the same manner as previously described in connection with Figures 5 and 6.

It will be noted that the handle C shown in Figure 9 engages the central partition 66 in such a way that the vertical crease line extending downwardly from the her 78 in Figure 4) lines up with the central creases 152 and 153. The board tends to form a bead at the back side by reason of the fact that the crease line 78 is originally formed by a creasing rule depressing the board between two spaced pieces of make ready in the cutting and creasing die. This bead tends to strike the top edge of the box-engaging flaps 138 and 139 which for this reason are cut out in the form of the V as shown at 176 and 177 in Figure 7. The V-cuts permit the points 179 and 180 to engage the skirt of the webs before the head of the crease 78 strikes the apex of the V. Once engaged, the handle can be. pulled up easily until the bottom edge 168 of the central partition 66 bears against the flap fold lines 140 and 141. In Figure 9 the handle C is shown in fully engaged position.

Figure 10 illustrates a variation in the use of the handle C" inwhich the handle spans the central cell 65 and is inserted into the end cell 64. This arrangement is suitable for multicellular boxes having an odd number of cells arranged in line, whereas Figure 9 illustrates an arrangement suited for an even number of cells.

What is claimed is:

1. A self engaging strap type handle of foldable sheet material, particularly for use with multicellular folding; box structures, the handle comprising, a pair of substan-. tially vertical handle panels folded in substantially the shape of an inverted U, the upper portion constitut. ing a grip portion; a box engaging flap articulated to, the end of each of the handle panels along a substan-.. tially horizontal flap fold line, said flap being folded,-

back upon the panel to which it is articulated, at least; the lower portions of the handle panels together with, the folded-back flaps being bowed to form oppositely end of each of the handle panels along a substantially horizontal flap fold line, said flap being folded back upon the panel to which it is articulated, at least the lower portions of the handle panels together with the foldedback flaps being creased along at least one substantially vertical crease extending to said flap fold line to form oppositely facing vertical channels in-which the distance between the lateral edges of opposite handle panels is greater than the distance between the vertical creases of the opposite handle panels, said box engaging flaps having upwardly facing edges, said upwardly facing edges being spaced a substantial distance from the flap fold lines, the last named distance being measured along the said crease.

3. A self engaging strap type handle of foldable sheet material, particularly for use with multicellular folding box structures, the handle corn-prising, a pair of substantially vertical handle panels folded in substantially the shape of an inverted U, the upper portion constituting a grip portion; a flap articulated to the end of each of. the handle panels along a substantially horizontal flap fold line, said flap comprising a central securing portion and lateral box engaging wing portions, said flap being flap fold line back upon the handle panel and its bordering flange panels to which it is articulated, said flap comprising a central securing portion adhered to said handle panel, and lateral box engaging wing portions, said wing portions being separated from said central portion by a cut terminating a substantial distance from the flap fold line, said out overlying the handle panel, said wing portions being Wider than said flange panels so as to extend beyond the flange fold lines towards said securing portion, said flange panels being folded relatively to the handle panel along said flange fold lines to assume an angular position with regard to the handle panel, the direction of folding being such that the handle panels are spaced apart less than the flange panels which flare away from it, the folding of the flange panels relatively to the handle panels re sulting in creasing of the wing portions substantially in line With the flange fold lines, whereby the flaps are drawn tight against the handle panels and the flange panels and 5 are prevented from unfolding.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

